| Region | |
|---|---|
| Subregion | France > Bordeaux > Right Bank > St Emilion |
| Colour | Red |
| Type | Still |
The 2005 Troplong Mondot is a blend of 90% Merlot and the rest Cabernet Franc. It was emotional tasting this wine, thinking of the late Christine Valette, who made this compelling wine while battling with considerable courage against an insidious disease. It is a great effort and a superstar of the vintage. Dense purple, it offers notes of white chocolate, blackberry, cassis and licorice as well as a hint of truffle and some subtle background oak. Full-bodied, multi-layered, and spectacularly pure and rich, it is a tour de force, and a great tribute to an incredible woman. Remarkably youthful, this wine probably needs another 4-8 years of bottle age, and should keep for 20 or more years. Kudos to the late Christine Valette! Drink 2019-2043.
We tasted two versions of the 2005 here, one double decanted and one opened just before the tasting. First up double decanted, and it is immediately clear that there is still vibrancy to the ruby-red colour, with dawn-rose hints around the edges. Fennel, rosemary, sage, white pepper, white truffle, grilled sandalwood, cedar, a generous, broad-shouldered, nuanced and spice-filled wine. The oak clamps in halfway through the palate and slightly overpowers things, so I suggest still giving this another few years before drinking. This character is even more true in the just-opened version, with the emphasis on cocoa beans, espresso, rosemary and black pepper spice. Strongly suggest giving it a double decant if opening any time soon. 100% new oak, Michel Rolland consultant.
Tasted blind. Hint of sweet coconut oak on the nose. Pure direct flavours but some almost bitter tannins on the end. Over-extracted.
Drink 2018-2028
Full ruby-red. Spectacularly ripe nose offers plum jam, minerals, licorice, mocha and a whiff of game, all lifted by exotic flowers. Explosively ripe and sweet in the mouth, with uncanny fullness and depth to the flavors of raspberry, smoke and milk chocolate. A blockbuster of a wine with a three-dimensional texture and outstanding weight but with almost magically ripe acidity giving great precision to the flavors and drawing out the finish. Incredible melting tannins saturate the palate and front teeth. Wonderfully suave wine, the best I've ever tasted from this chateau.
Came 21st out of 184 wines
A reconstruction of the great 1990 vintage, perhaps even with greater body and ageing potential. Marvellous truffle scent, huge body, noble tannins able to compete with the best first growths, and super-precise and harmonious balance. Great wine. Drink from 2017.
Rated 100 points by Robert Parker in an email news letter, dated 13.10.09.''Again, the most remarkable thing about this tasting was the extraordinary quality of the wines. Cos d'Estournel and Larcis Ducasse were both very closed, and I was shocked by how open, rich, and sweet the Ducru-Beaucaillou was. I wasn't surprised by the great performances of Pavie, Pape-Clément, Angèlus, La Mission Haut-Brion, l'Eglise-Clinet, and Troplong Mondot. While 2005 is a frightfully expensive vintage, it is the real deal, and I was glad to see the sweetness of the tannins throughout the wines as well as their incredible stuffing and richness.''
This estate was justifiably elevated to a Premier Grand Cru Classe in the new St.-Emilion classification thanks to the exceptional efforts of proprietress Christine Valette over the last two decades. The 2005 is one of the monumental wines of the vintage, and may eclipse their prodigious 1990. Inky/blue/purple-colored with an exceptional bouquet of Asian spices, blueberries, blackberries, truffles, cold steel, graphite, and charcoal, it hits the palate with exceptional purity, laser-like precision, a compellingly concentrated, multilayered mouthfeel, a broad, savory texture, terrific acidity, and substantial, but sweet tannins. It lives up to everything it revealed in barrel, and appears set to live for a half century or more. Anticipated maturity: 2018-2050.
A blockbuster effort from proprietress Christine Valette (who also deserves congratulations for Troplong Mondot’s ascent to a St.-Emilion Premier Grand Cru Classe, currently suspended pending litigation), this full-bodied, multi-tiered 2005 continues to confirm its extraordinary dimensions and quality. It is unquestionably the finest vintage for Troplong since 1990. A modern day legend, it exhibits a black/blue color as well as aromas and flavors of graphite, blueberries, black truffles, incense, and camphor. The sensational sweetness and layers of fruit are buttressed by high tannin, good acidity, and unbelievable precision and purity. This profoundly concentrated, full-bodied tour de force in winemaking is Madame Valette’s crowning achievement, and it will be talked about for decades to come. Anticipated maturity: 2015-2040.
Two wines you can't afford to miss...are Larcis Ducasse and Troplong-Mondot.
A blockbuster, extraordinarily profound effort from proprietor Christine Valette, the 2005 Troplong Mondot is the finest wine she has made since the other-worldly 1990. It dense black color is followed by a stupendous bouquet of blueberries, blackberries, truffles, graphite, and smoke. It cascades over the palate with exquisite density, purity, full-bodied power, and remarkable freshness as well as delineation. This magical wine somehow manages to harness extraordinary power and structure with a sense of delicacy and finesse. Anticipated maturity: 2011-2025+.
Aromas of blackberry, toasted oak and vanilla. Full-bodied, with velvety tannins and a flavorful finish. So velvety. Seductive.
Very dark crimson. Very full and dense and serious!!! Dry rather than sweet. Great undertow of strength yet fabulous balance. Lots of dry tannin on the finish - this wine isn't nearly ready - but it has real complexity. Long. But it clenched up in the glass
Dark purple. Rather savoury and dense. Lots of voluptuous fruit and heady, tarry flavours with a strong liquorice element and pretty dry tannins but there is beguiling silky fruit in the middle. Someone here has run with the concept that this is an exceptional vintage and the wine deserves to be exceptional in style but it's not a trial to taste or drink! Clean, brisk finish. Drink 2014-26
